On
Saturday, October 29, on the hilly trails of Thetford State Park, Harwood
Highlander boys’ and girls’ cross country runners put an amazing finishing
touch on their seasons. Both teams captured the Vermont Division II state cross
country titles.

The
girls defended their title from 2010 and captured their third straight title by
dominating the field with a 48-point victory—arguably, the largest victory ever
by a defending team. The young Harwood boys’ team won in a barn-burner finish,
squeaking out a two-point victory over the senior-laden squad from
Woodstock.

“I
am so happy,” remarked Harwood senior co-captain Laurel Whitney. Whitney
finished third as a junior but has struggled for the past year with injuries
created by a growth spurt. On Saturday, she carried her lanky frame to a top 10
finish helping her teammates to a dominating finish. Harwood girls were led by
junior Jaime Thomas who was crowned Vermont State Division II champion for the
second year in a row. Thomas accomplished the victory by running with the same
style she has used all season: staying with the leaders for the first half of
the race and dropping them during the second part. “I left them all on the
hills,” said the scrappy junior.

First-year
Harwood cross country runner Ellie Ramsey had the best race of the season
finishing an impressive third. The Duxbury native, who lives at the base of
Camel’s Hump, was isolated from her home for some time after Hurricane Irene.
She was as comfortable as at home on the hills of Thetford on Saturday. Both Thomas
and Ramsey qualified as individuals for the New England Cross Country
Championships on November 12. Alice Woodruff (9), Kate Stevens (16), co-captain Hannah
Woodruff (17) and Olivia Nishi (30) solidified the Harwood effort in the 100-plus
runner field.

Harwood
boys had an absolutely stunning victory. The youthful squad of seven runners
composed of two sophomores, three freshman and two seniors shocked the teams
from Middlebury and Woodstock. “Going into the meet, I truly believed we were a
year away. I thought we could win the state title but it would be in 2012. They
really surprised me,” said coach John Kerrigan. The margin of victory (two
points) was one of the closest in Vermont state history.

“It
came down to Geordy Aitken passing Jeff Tucker of Woodstock at the finish line,”
said the excited veteran coach. Senior Geordy Aitken was named in honor of
former Vermont Governor George Aitken. The senior co-captain has been a team leader
on and off the trails. “Geordy’s pre-meet speech gave me inspiration to carry
me to my best race ever,” said freshman Nathanael Kuzio who finished an
impressive 13th.

Harwood
identical twins Geoffrey and Nathaniel Kazlow finished 10th and 11th,
respectively. “They have been stalwarts for us all year and will be our leaders
next year. Our twins did not beat their twins today (referring to the identical
senior Guertin twins from Middlebury) but we came in darn close,” commented
Kerrigan.

Freshman
Sam Nishi helped support the two-point edge by racing to a personal record time
on the hilly Thetford trails. “No one ever gets a personal record at Thetford,”
said Kerrigan. Nishi, who was Harwood’s fifth runner, finished just behind the
fourth runner from Woodstock. Senior co-captain Cameron Hancock (33) and freshman
Jacob Palmerio (36) helped solidify the Highlander victory.

“It
was an awesome day for Harwood cross country. Some of these runners were
severely affected by Irene. Many of them were instrumental in helping in the
flood recovery in Waterbury and The Valley. Some of them started out the season
without running shoes and places to live. How does it go? “In order to enjoy
the rainbow you have to put up with the rain? Today all their efforts in
practice and volunteering to help others allowed them to enjoy the glow of the
rainbow,” said Kerrigan. “Every cloud does have a silver lining.”

Both
Harwood teams have qualified for the New England Cross Country Championships to
be held on November 12 in Ponaganset, Rhode Island.